Tiger cub found by Mexico police in couple's car boot

Police in Mexico who stopped a couple on a motorway for a minor traffic offence were surprised to find a tiger cub in the car boot.

Officers said they grew suspicious when the couple reacted "aggressively" after being flagged down in the state of Querétaro.

It is not the first time a tiger has been seized in Mexico.

Drug traffickers often keep exotic animals as pets and the smuggling of big cats is a lucrative business.

Municipal police from the town of El Marqués described how the couple tried to escape when they were stopped by officers.

"Thanks to a quick manoeuvre, officers managed to block their way with a patrol car and arrest them immediately," they wrote in a press release.

During a search of the vehicle they came across the tiger cub wedged in between suitcases and bags in the boot.

They also found four guns and almost 100 cartridges.

Officials said the cub was being cared for by experts who would aim to return it to "its natural habitat". They did not clarify where that would be.

It is not illegal to own an exotic animal in Mexico, as long as the owner can prove it came from a certified dealer and was born in captivity.

However, many of the animals seized in recent years were bought illegally or had been smuggled.

Mexican law also bans the walking of tigers in public.

In 2020, a fully grown Bengal tiger was seized after it had been roaming the streets of Tlaquepaque, pursued by a man with a lasso.

Its owner had the correct paperwork but police argued he had failed to comply with the necessary safety regulations.

Mexican wildlife officials have also in the past rehomed lions which were kept as pets.

In 2019, they removed three lions from a rooftop in Mexico City where a man had kept them for years, much to the annoyance of the neighbours who complained about their roars.